By Thuku Kariuki
The seventh session of the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA-7) will take place in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital, from 8th to 12th December 2025.
The Assembly is expected to convene more than 55 ministers and approximately 3,500 delegates. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) acknowledged Kenya’s Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Forestry, Deborah Barasa, and the Government of Kenya for their continued partnership and longstanding support as the host country of both UNEP and UNEA. Nairobi, recognized globally as a hub for environmental governance, remains a central part of UNEP’s operations.
UNEA-7 will be held under the theme “Advancing sustainable solutions for a resilient planet.” This theme reflects the growing complexity of the global geopolitical environment and underscores the increasing urgency to address the world’s mounting environmental challenges.
Delegates will examine 19 draft resolutions and decisions covering a broad range of environmental issues, including artificial intelligence, minerals and metals management, wildfire prevention and response, and matters pertaining to the hydrological cycle, among others.
In the press briefing, UNEP leadership highlighted the accelerating pace of environmental degradation, citing recent data that point to intensifying climate impacts, rising emissions, unprecedented heatwaves, worsening pollution levels and continued loss of ecosystems and biodiversity. These challenges, they stressed, affect all nations without exception and require coordinated, global responses.
UNEP also referenced significant progress made in environmental multilateralism since UNEA-6 in February 2024. Notable achievements include the establishment of the Intergovernmental Science-Policy Panel on Chemicals, Waste and Pollution, which completes a triad of global scientific advisory bodies alongside the IPCC and IPBES.
Further advancements include the creation of the first dedicated mechanism under the Convention on Biological Diversity to ensure meaningful participation of Indigenous Peoples and local communities in global biodiversity decision-making, as well as the entry into force of the Agreement on Biodiversity Beyond National Jurisdiction (BBNJ Agreement), representing a historic milestone for the protection and sustainable use of marine biodiversity in areas beyond national jurisdiction.
Despite these advancements, UNEP acknowledged that current efforts remain insufficient to meet international environmental goals, noting persistent concerns regarding the pace of multilateral action. Consequently, UNEA-7 will place a strong emphasis on strengthening international cooperation and enhancing coherence across multilateral environmental agreements. The Assembly aims to advance collective, inclusive approaches to addressing the triple planetary crisis of climate change, biodiversity loss and pollution as interconnected and mutually reinforcing challenges.
The Assembly will also feature the Youth Environment Assembly, organized by and for young people, to ensure meaningful engagement of youth in global environmental governance. In addition, a dedicated Multilateral Environmental Agreement Day will provide a platform for major international environmental agreements—from biodiversity to regional seas—to coordinate and enhance joint action.
UNEP announced that the seventh edition of the Global Environmental Outlook (GEO-7) will be launched on 9 December during UNEA-7. The report, prepared by 287 multidisciplinary scientists from 82 countries, will outline solutions across key interlinked domains, including economics and finance, circularity and waste, the environment, energy and food systems.
As UNEA-7 takes shape, UNEP underscored that no single Assembly can, on its own, achieve the global environmental objectives set by the international community. Instead, progress depends on sustained and constructive multilateral engagement, with countries continuing to work collaboratively and consistently toward shared goals. UNEP expressed hope that UNEA-7 will help reinforce the collective resolve needed to address the world’s most pressing and emerging environmental challenges.
